Turn your Android phone or iPhone into a tablet with the Superscreen

Your iPhone or Android smartphone are essentially small computers with small screens. While screen sizes may be increasing in the smartphone world to just under 6-inches, they’re still much smaller than their tablet counterparts.

So what if you want to watch a movie or play a game on a tablet-sized screen, but without having to invest some serious cash on a separate tablet? Enter the Superscreen.

The Superscreen is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter, although it’s already smashed its $50,000 target. It’s essentially just a 10.1-inch full HD tablet screen that connects to your smartphone via “high performance hardware communication circuitry”, no Wi-Fi or Bluetooth involved here, and mirrors its display exactly.

It can support multi-touch input exactly as you would be on your smartphone and even claims to support the Apple Pencil.

The Superscreen has its own 5-megapixel rear and 2-megapixel front cameras so you can carry out video calls and take photos, and any photos you do take automatically save to your smartphone.

On the bottom you’ll find dual stereo speakers and the USB-C charging port – the 6,000mAh battery claims to last around 12 hours – and it has Bluetooth 4.1 built-in so you can send audio to a pair of wireless headphones, for example.

The Superscreen is available to pre-order from Kickstarter now in Midnight Black or Ivory White colour finishes for the early bird price of $99, although delivery isn’t expected until December this year.

Apple (Product)RED iPhone 7 is as red in colour as it sounds

Apple has released a (Product)RED version of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus to celebrate its continues commitment to the charity.

Apple has always had a fondness for the charity, and this time has gone as far as creating two bright red versions of its two flagship smartphones.

The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition will be available to order online worldwide and in stores beginning Friday 24 March (Red Nose day is probably just a coincidence), and feature a red anodised shell.  

“Since we began working with (RED) 10 years ago, our customers have made a significant impact in fighting the spread of AIDS through the purchase of our products, from the original iPod nano (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition all the way to today’s lineup of Beats products and accessories for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.

Aside from the colour, the two Apple smartphones will be identical to the current iPhone 7 line-up in terms of specs.

The company, unlike it normally does with partnerships with its Apple Watch, hasn’t included specific exclusive wallpapers, or any other (Product)RED features. The new models will be available in 128GB and 256GB models starting at £699 in the UK and $749 in the US.  

Apple says that both special edition models are available worldwide beginning Friday, March 24, and start shipping to customers by the end of March in the US and more than 40 countries and regions, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the UK and United Arab Emirates.

Brazil, Chile, Colombia, India, Turkey and other countries will follow in April.

Alexa lets you order from Prime Now

“Alexa, order chips and dip from Prime Now” is a phrase that you can now say and legitimately expect chips (and dip) to turn up at your door within two hours. That’s because the shopping giant has bonded its fast delivery knowhow with its voice assistant, enabling you to just ask for things and have them arrive.

The usual caveats and restrictions apply, since the feature will only work in eligible cities where Prime Now is operating. Plus, you’ll only be able to order alcohol and other restricted goods in locations where you can do so legally, like Seattle, Washington and (kinda) Ohio.

Still, being able to bake in voice ordering and fast delivery is another way that Amazon plans to own the entire retail experience. After all, if you don’t need to leave the house to order convenience goods (or takeout), why bother trucking down to your local bodega?

Source: Amazon (Businesswire)

Google Maps’ latest trick is remembering where you parked

Google Now kept track of parking locations before, but it wasn’t with any degree of accuracy. The latest version of the Android Google Maps app circumvents how inaccurate the feature was by having you mark a parking spot for yourself. That’s a pretty stark comparison to the dark magic (read: GPS and other data) that Now used prior.

Simply open the application after parking, tap the blue location dot and you’re good to go. From there you can add notes (helpful for jotting down location in parking ramps) and even take photos to remind you which blue Toyota Camry is yours. Additionally you can add a timer so you know when the meter will expire. All of this info can be pulled for notifications and alerts, too.

As Android Police points out, though, this appears to only work for one car at a time. Not a huge deal, but it does rule out keeping track of your car at home, and a rental car in another city while on vacation.

AP also notes that some Android Auto users might see a new arrival screen too. Oh, and folks using Maps to find their way around via public transit could see weather alerts.

Via: Android Police

Source: Google Support, Google Play

iCloud led authorities to journalist’s Twitter attacker

The man who triggered Newsweek journalist Kurt Eichenwald’s epileptic seizure through Twitter used a prepaid phone with no identifying info. But a little digging revealed that the Tracfone prepaid SIM card he used was once connected to an iCloud account, which ultimately led to his arrest. According to the newly surfaced documents The Verge shared, authorities started by sending a court order to Twitter to ask for the details behind the @jew_goldstein account. If you’ll recall, that user sent Eichenwald a “weaponized tweet” containing a strobing image with the words “You deserve a seizure for your posts.” The recipient often talks about his condition, so the sender likely knows that the journalist is epileptic.

The details Twitter handed over didn’t have a lot of useful details, but it did reveal the Tracfone number @jew_goldstein used. Since AT&T supports that Tracfone SIM, authorities sent its next info request to the carrier. The phone company’s toll records revealed that the SIM was once associated with an iPhone 6. What truly helped the case was the info authorities got from Apple after sending the tech titan a few warrants. The iCloud info Cupertino handed over contains the owner’s name: John Rivello. It also had his verified email address and his home address in Maryland.

Authorities found a screenshot of Eichenwald’s wife’s response to the strobing image Rivello tweeted in his iCloud account. It also had a screenshot of the journalist’s Wikipedia page that had been altered to show a date of death, as well as a screenshot of an article on the search for the perpetrator. Plus, authorities found a photo of the account’s owner holding up his driver’s license with his address and photo, which made finding him much easier.

All those clues from iCloud led feds straight to Rivello who was arrested on March 17th and charged with cyberstalking. We’re guessing the court will dissect all the pieces of evidence the feds unearthed — it’ll be interesting to see if they’ll hold up and how the court will punish “weaponized tweets.”

Via: Dallas News, The Verge

Source: Kurt Eichenwald (Twitter)

Apple’s Clips app makes crafting viral videos in iOS dead-simple

Crafting a short-form video masterpiece on an iPhone or iPad is possible, but Apple just made it a little easier. This morning, the company announced a new iOS app called Clips that — long story short – tries to help anyone piece together a polished, well-produced video without a whole lot of work. After playing with the app earlier this week, I’d say Apple’s Clips team succeeded.

Now, you might be thinking that Apple already has a few video creation and editing tools available for iOS, and you’d be right. On one end of the spectrum, you’ve got Memories videos –- iOS 10 automatically pieces these slideshow videos together from photos you’ve taken in the past. Meanwhile, iMovie sits on the other end. It’s not too hard to wrap your head around, but laying out clips and audio tracks on a timeline can seem daunting to beginners. It’s not hard to see how Apple created Clips to fill the gap between these two experiences, and the simplified process of creating and editing will feel awfully familiar to some.

If you’ve recorded clips and stitched them into a single video in Instagram, congratulations – you already know how this app works. Hold down the record button to capture what you want, let go when you’re done and repeat. Once done, you can drag your clips into the right order and flesh out your micro-films with photos, not to mention filters, emoji and animated icons and titles you can litter on top of your work. What would’ve taken minutes in iMovie takes seconds here, thanks especially to some interesting threads of intelligence woven into the app.

You know those short, text-laden videos that have invaded your social networks of choice? For better or worse, they’re now dead-simple to create. Step 1: Choose a look for the text you want on-screen. Step 2: Speak. That’s it. From there, your words are automatically transcribed and time-coded so the text appears pops up in the video the moment you say them. In our very brief time playing with Clips, this was easily the most impressive trick the app had to offer… though I wouldn’t go in expecting perfection.

Since Live Titles’ dictation is powered in part by Siri, you’ll need a decent data connection for them to work in the field. (If one isn’t available, you could always go back and add the Live Titles later.) And internet connections aside, the app will almost certainly misinterpret your words from time to time. My favorite goof from our testing session: it turned the word “macchiato” into the seemingly Scottish surname “McYaddow”. Thankfully, it’s easy enough to edit those Live Titles after they’ve been recorded, and they’ll still be correctly time-coded when you’re done. iOS is also smart enough to tell when you’re talking about a person, so if the app transcribes a name you’ve spoken in the video, that person appears as a suggested contact when you try to share your creation.

Clips’ other fascinating trick comes in at the end of the process, after you’ve pieced together your opus. Beyond using your own music as a soundtrack, Clips comes with a handful of pre-recorded tracks that range from cliché hipster-ukelele to a dense, dramatic piece composed by Hans Zimmer. (Seriously.) What’s really neat is how these songs can expand and contract – they’re pieced together from a selection of intros, middle bits and closers to precisely fit the length of your video, and even in the app’s unfinished state, the effect was near-seamless.

There’s a lot of power here that’s neatly hidden behind simple controls, but Clips doesn’t require Apple’s latest and greatest hardware to work properly. When it launches next month, it’ll run on the iPhone 5s and newer, along with the iPad Air and newer. (Just make sure your device is running iOS 10.3.) Given Apple’s popularity and how pervasive the iPhone seems to be sometimes, you should probably spend the next few days/weeks enjoying the world before these slick little videos wind up everywhere.

Apple announces red iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

In the midst of launching a new video-editing app for the iPhone and iPad, Apple has also just snuck out a new special edition red iPhone 7, to barely any fanfare. (Although rumors that something was afoot began when Apple’s online store went down earlier.) The red aluminum iPhone 7 and 7 Plus will be launching globally, adding some welcome color to the black and plainer metallic shades we’ve had until now.

It’s certainly not the first red-hued device from Apple (that honor goes to its red iPod), but the company has supported AIDS charity Product RED for the last ten years. It has apparently contributed more than $130 million in corporate donations. A red iPhone is far more substantial charitable contribution than wireless headphones or an iPhone battery case, at least.

The phones will be joined by a new iPad, as well as new silicone phone cases in azure, camellia and pebble. There will also be new leather cases in taupe, sapphire and berry shades, priced at $35. The special edition iPhones (in 128GB and 256GB options) will be available to order online worldwide and in stores beginning Friday, March 24, starting from $749.

Apple’s new 9.7-inch iPad is its cheapest yet

Apple just simplified its tablet lineup in a big way. The company has introduced a new 9.7-inch iPad — not the Air 3, just… iPad. The new model will seem extremely familiar on the outside, but there are a bunch of notable under-the-hood upgrades. You’ll find a slightly older but still speedy A9 processor inside instead of the Air 2’s aging A8X, and Apple has doubled the capacities to give you either 32GB or 128GB (sorry, no 256GB option here). This new mid-size model also touts a brighter display, although it’s still sitting at a 2,048 x 1,536 resolution.

The cameras remain the same, for or better or worse, with an 8MP shooter on the back and a 1.2MP FaceTime cam at the front.

For most, the biggest deal may simply be the price. The upgraded iPad is available now at $329 for the 32GB version, and $459 for its 128GB model. That’s the lowest starting price yet for a mid-size iPad, and it’s clear that this is the new budget option. In fact, Apple has gone so far as to make the iPad mini 4 more expensive – it’s now available solely in a 128GB edition for $399, and there’s no iPad mini 2 to pick up the slack. Apple clearly feels that 9.7 inches represents its mainstream size going forward.

Source: Apple, BusinessWire

Hyperloop company begins building its first passenger pod

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies has announced that construction will soon begin on its first passenger capsule. The pod is being built in partnership with Spanish engineering firm Carbures and is expected to be unveiled in early 2018. HTT says that the craft will be tested and tweaked at its Toulouse HQ, ready to run in the first “commercial” Hyperloop system that the company expects will be announced in the near future.

The announcement also reveals the specifications of the new travel capsule, which will be 30 meters long and 2.7 meters wide. Weighing 20 tons, the vessel is expected to carry between 28 and 40 passengers at a time. Finally, executives are boasting that the craft’s top speed is 760 miles an hour, bumping close to the sound barrier, which is 767 miles an hour.

It’s hard to make a direct comparison, since Hyperloop is closer to flying than the traditional passenger railway network. That said, a long-distance route like Amtrak’s Acela Express offers some sense of the difference in scale between the two technologies. A typical Acela Express carriage, for instance, has a capacity of 65, is 26 meters long and weighs around 63 tons.

Again, HTT is taking a different tack to its more well-heeled rival, Hyperloop One, which has begun building a track, rather than a capsule. Of course, plenty rests on HTT’s ability to translate its crowdsourced knowledge into reality, not to mention deliver on a complicated transportation platform. We’ll wait and see just how successful it is, but hopefully news of a commercial route won’t be too far away.

U.S. Bans Tablets and Laptops on Flights From Eight Middle Eastern Countries

The Department of Homeland of Security today announced new carry-on restrictions that prevent U.S.-bound passengers from eight Middle Eastern countries from carrying personal electronic devices larger than a smartphone in the passenger cabin.

The TSA order, which does not have a stated end date, covers laptops, tablets, e-readers, cameras, portable DVD players, and handheld gaming devices larger than a smartphone. According to the “emergency amendment”, such forbidden devices must be stowed in checked baggage.

The list of Muslim-majority countries includes Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Morocco, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. The nine airlines impacted by the order are Royal Jordanian, EgyptAir, Turkish Airlines, Saudia, Kuwait Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Ethiad Airways.

If the airlines fail to implement the changes within 96 hours, the Federal Aviation Authority could revoke their clearance certificates, which would ban them from flying into U.S. airspace. No U.S. airline is affected by the ban because none currently operates direct flights to and from the above destinations.

U.S. Administration aides declined to comment on any new or specific threats, but said the government had made the decision based on evaluated intelligence suggesting some terrorist organizations have considered using consumer electronics as a way to hide explosives and smuggle them onto passenger planes. It’s not yet clear if or how this ruling relates to the Trump administration’s revised travel ban, which is currently being challenged by U.S. courts.

The full airport ban list announced by the Department of Homeland Security includes: Queen Alia International Airport (AMM), Cairo International Airport (CAI), Ataturk International Airport (IST), King Abdul-Aziz International Airport (JED), King Khalid International Airport (RUH), Kuwait International Airport (KWI), Mohammed V Airport (CMN), Hamad International Airport (DOH), Dubai International Airport (DXB), and Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH).

(Via Associated Press.)

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